Friday, March 06, 2009

Another not-much day. I’m somewhere in row 23 of the 12th repeat of the Princess centre.

Thank you for the news about K1 Yarns and their forthcoming Selkie range, Fizz. (I wish you’d resume blogging.) If I get there tomorrow, I think maybe it is my duty to the world economy to buy some yarn. I’ll try to think about children’s cardigans today – a possible entry for the Home Industries Tent at the Games this year – and perhaps buy supplies for that. As if I needed supplies. I feel I thought of the Perfect Pattern as I was lying in bed this morning, and now can’t remember. Maybe it was a dream. No! I do remember. More soon, perhaps.

I am sort of worried about the Future of Blogging, at least as far as knitting is concerned. Many of my faves seem to have given up, or to be posting rarely. Even Franklin is pretty quiet these days. (My computer is behaving oddly this morning, slow at best and occasionally freezing up entirely. I have wasted enough time already that I’m not going to supply links. You all know where to find Franklin, certainly.) Readership here is gently declining.

On the other hand, the Reliable Prolifics seem to be at it still. I just had a peek at the Harlot and Crazy Aunt Purl, and there they are, right up to date. Joe is pretty faithful, and always worth reading.

But are we perhaps ready to disappear into Ravelry and pull up the bridge?
Posted by at

23 comments:

  1. Anonymous11:41 AM

    It is a constant wonder (and joy) to me how frequent bloggers like you and Stephanie can do this almost every day.
    Reading you has replaced the daily newspapers in my morning routine--with coffee--and it's a bit like checking one's favourite columnists used to be, back in the days when newspapers arrived every day in our mailbox. And a bit like a brief phone call from a good friend. So don't vanish into Ravelry--it's not really a blog substitute, is it?

    ReplyDelete
  2. Susan11:47 AM

    Oh my don't you leave too. My mornings would not be the same without our chat...one sided...lol
    I follow your progress on the Princess with interest, I enjoy our getaways to Strathardle, the garden planting and trips to the art gallery. I blog on and seldom get comments. I just pretend I have the readership that Stephanie has. Ravelry has it's place but it can't replace blogging. That's my tuppence on the situation...

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anonymous1:28 PM

    No, no, you can't leave. I enjoy reading you and it makes my day. Without fail, I read you, Stephanie, Franklin and Aunt Purl. If I only have a few minutes, you're at the top of the list. Love to hear about the Princess, the family, Strathardle, and everything.

    ReplyDelete
  4. steel breeze1:49 PM

    Nah, don't pull up the drawbridge. I love blogging and will continue alongside Ravelry. It's nice to show the world what you're up to, and it's more positive than reading the newspapers at the moment! :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. Anonymous2:00 PM

    You're at the top of my list as well, Jean.
    Ron from Mexico

    ReplyDelete
  6. Sandy3:14 PM

    I read everyday. I enjoy blogging. I like Rav but I like blogs better. I feel I get to know a person better. Learn more from them. I see what you mean though. A lot of blogs are rather slow these days. I can't wait to see the princess too! And I look forward to the games this year.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Janet3:21 PM

    I was surprised to read your blog today and find that you feel that the blogging scene is in decline. I for one was part of that decline for a while but now I'm back blogging and reading other favourite blogs as frequently as before. Your blog is top of the list and I agree with the sentiments expressed above by previous commenters.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Anonymous3:34 PM

    Jean,

    I read you every morning while I eat my yogurt and granola and decide what sort of torture to inflict on my students...

    The blogging has slowed for a lot of people- but frankly I prefer blogs over Ravelry. I feel that you get a better feel for a person's life.

    I was flipping through the heirloom knitting website the other day and I saw the "Angela shawl"- I am tempted (it seems so providential with my name and all) to try it- especially after watching all your efforts with princess. Maybe after I totally finish up with the dissertation- it could be a treat. But I am curious- are you interesting in any of their other patterns once you finish the princess?

    ReplyDelete
  9. FiberQat4:20 PM

    I have noticed that some aren't blogging as often, but I still prefer the blogs to going through the forums on Ravelry. I'm like GrannyPurple: you and the other bloggers are like reading my favorite columnists in the paper while enjoying my morning cuppa before tackling the monsters of the day. I am particularly enjoying your progress on the Princess and cheering you on from the far side of the US. When you go to Strathardle, I miss your postings but wonder what adventures you had off in the hinterlands. Then you appear and I smile.

    For me, blogging is my way of sharing thoughts without having to fit into a particular forum. It's a window into my life I want to share with my internet friends and acquaintances. I'm on Twitter and regularly tweet, but I still like the blog for pic posting and adventure telling.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Anonymous4:21 PM

    I read your blog daily! Ravelry is a different sort of beast, though some knitters may have lost their blogging impetus through spending much time on it. It's true that some of my favorite knitting bloggers (two of them actually known to me in real life) have stopped, but they have busy lives and needed a break. People phase in and out, but will still write (or resume writing) and read blogs. Hoping you don't tire of yours,
    Gretchen

    ReplyDelete
  11. Anonymous4:51 PM

    I only discovered your blog a few weeks ago so don't leave now!

    ReplyDelete
  12. FUZZARELLY4:54 PM

    And I read you every day, too!

    I regret that some people are not blogging so much. I particularly miss Rabbitch, and even Crazy Aunt Purl has changed focus ever since her book came out.

    I cannot abide forums, either on Ravelry or anywhere else. I have used Ravelry a few times for a pattern search, but otherwise I find it to be a huge and pointless time suck. I'd usually rather BE knitting than reading comments about knitting.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Cargo & Lene4:54 PM

    Oh, I am still reading your blog, I just do it from bloglines.com so your counter would not count me. I read it every day :-)

    ReplyDelete
  14. Cargo & Lene4:55 PM

    Forgot to say: I will not budge from reading your blog until the princess is finished, at least! But you knew that, I hope :-)

    ReplyDelete
  15. Unknown6:37 PM

    I hope knit blogging doesn't fall the wayside. Ravelry is nice, but isn't a replacement for the blogs. I like reading what other people have been up to. The blogs have a lot of great ideas in them, knit and otherwise. I have found wonderful recipes on knit blogs. Your blog is one of my favorites!

    ReplyDelete
  16. Anonymous7:19 PM

    I do so appreciate your constancy and general good humor and look forward to your blog every day. There are other blogs I enjoy as well but they are hit or miss. If you don't appear one day or other, we worry. Of course the lace I am currently knitting on is nowhere near as intricate as yours but your words help me keep beavering on.

    ReplyDelete
  17. J1:41 AM

    Keep on...persevere etc etc. I count myself among your readership and I "don't resemble that remark" --the one about gentle decline! Also, may I add that I feel I am responsible for introducing you to QJoe (my former colleague at a knitshop in NJ). While I haven't sought your help for advice on Gladys Amedro patterns lately, be assured that my daughter's christening shawl was a success (with thanks to you) and you remain an inspiration and knitting muse. Keep on blogging!

    ReplyDelete
  18. Anonymous2:15 AM

    I'm here! ::waving madly:: Don't go!

    Ravelry for me is a tool, not a pleasure. Good writing is denifitely a pleasure, and it will bring me here as often as you care to post. Thank you. I know it's hard work some days, but we appreciate it!

    ReplyDelete
  19. Lisa3:02 AM

    Oh gosh no! I read you every day and miss you when you're at Strathardle or otherwise involved.

    I've noticed the quietness on blogs I frequent and am determined to comment more often. There's no replacement for the pleasure I get from your blog and so many others.

    ReplyDelete
  20. Anonymous4:00 AM

    Jean, I too feel the need to comment in order to encourage you to keep writing. Someone else said it here - always a pleasure to get an almost daily bit of good writing, for which I can count on you and on the Yarn Harlot. I enjoy you both for your insights on knitting and on life in general - just something good about your tone. Stephanie's in my own city, which is great, and you're in one of my favourite places. I think I found you through the Curmudgeon, who is blogging less these days for good and happy reasons. I'm avoiding Ravelry - busy enough with work, part-time studies, volunteer and domestic lives and even some knitting, and I use a computer onto which I can't download software, which I think rules out Ravelry anyway. I first started reading blogs a few years ago when I discovered how good they were for showing me how a given pattern looked on someone wider than a broomstick, as a guide to whether it was one for me to knit. I do get the impression that Ravelry would be good for that purpose and has taken over that blog function to some extent, but by now I'm better at knowing what would suit me and how to tweak patterns. Blogs have been great for providing technical knitting pointers, too - maybe Ravelry also offers those.
    Do please continue.
    - Beth in Toronto

    ReplyDelete
  21. Anonymous7:22 AM

    I hope blogging continues; blogs are relatively consistent and engagingly personal. It seems that I am among the few not on Ravelry, though I may succumb one of these months. All the computer venues are different. I haven't been on the "lists" or the "circles" which seem to have been more like Yahoo groups (with similar drawbacks in some cases), though I discovered blogs through clicking through the circles before they all became members-only. I used to read Usenet (home of large, often unruly groups with threaded discussions spinning out into webs of related and unrelated topics) until my other computer had issues and I was too chicken to deal with them, and I miss Usenet; it wasn't the same as the blogs or the Yahoo groups. I imagine Ravelry and its ilk are yet another form, good for some things, less good for others.
    But there are several bloggers whose blogs I check daily, and yours is one of the top three.

    By the way, Franklin has posted again. He's been traveling, not just book-signing, but teaching!

    ReplyDelete
  22. Kate9:04 AM

    I've noticed the decline - and have been part of the problem. Even so, I've kept tuning in to your blog, even if it is only on a weekly basis. Sorry for the lack of comments; that's unmannerly of me.

    Personally, I think of a lot of folk in Oz that I know and many have had a tough end and start to 2008/9, with ill health, deaths and various other crises. I know I blogged and commented more last year. I also think that folks have good resolve on the blogging front so I feel that it will come good eventually. I certainly haven't joined the Ravelry crew. Rav has it's virtues but I don't find its group forums to be as nice as the lovely reads I get on the blogs, particularly ones as generous as yours and Franklin's.

    ReplyDelete
  23. Beverley9:28 AM

    Yes I have to agree and admit I haven't posted in months! Perhaps tonight.

    My biggest bugbear , if bears can be bugs is that my employer has seen fit to lock down the internet so much that I can't read any of my favourites [ including you ] or blog in my breaks any more.

    I did [ briefly ] consider drastic options then reason prevailed. But I do so miss checking in with my favourites daily. It gave a lift to what is sometimes a dreary stressful job.

    I am so busy at home with study and kids not to mention garden etc etc that I rarely get near the PC these days. But am still here and hope springs eternal that I will get back to it soon.

    As for Raverly I am listed [ nzknitter ] but have never had the time to really get involved.

    Cheers from a much to hot and humid downunder.

    ReplyDelete

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)